Steel wool pad with handle



y 1960 G. HOROWITZ 2,938,

STEEL WOOL PAD WITH HANDLE Filed May 15, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

GLORIA HOROWITZ BY A p y; M Q

ATTORNEY May 31, 1960 G. HOROWITZ 2,938,223

STEEL WOOL PAD .wrm HANDLE Filed May 15, 1957 r 2 SheetsSheet 2 INVENTOR. GLORIA HOROWITZ United States This invention relates to pads of steel wool, used for cleaning pans, etc.

Ordinarily, steel wool pads are sold without handles,

and without backing plates or other stiffening means. As a result, such pads are rather diflicult to handle; grasping a pad, one brings the fingers too close to the surface being cleaned, tending in many instances to cause injury or discomfort to the user. Further, one is unable to keep the steel wool pad properly flattened out during the reciprocating movement thereof upon the surface being cleaned. Still further, there is the additional difficulty that it is difiicult to maintain a proper grip upon the pad. In addition, ones hands tend to become roughened and reddened, by continual grasping of the steel wool and immersion thereof in soapy water.

The main object of the present invention is to provide a steel wool pad and handle means therefor, so designed as to eliminate the several difficulties noted previously herein.

Another object is to provide a steel wool pad and handle, which will be capable of manufacture at so low a cost as to justify commercial production thereof.

Yet another object is to provide a steel wool pad and handle, which can be disposed of after the pad has been used to an extent such as would prevent further elncient use thereof.

Yet another object is to provide a steel wool pad and handle that will be particularly designed to permit the interchange of handles, that is, the steel wool pad and backing plate therefor can be disposed of after efficient use thereof is no longer possible, with the handle being readily attachable to the backing plate and being capable of detachment for use on a new pad and backing plate.

A further object is to so form the above mentioned handle as to permit it to be readily adjusted to either of two angularly spaced extreme positions ninety degrees apart, to permit use of the pad with maximum efficiency in different types of cleaning operations, that is, the handle may be extended straight outwardly from the pad if it is desired to insert the pad in a deep, relatively narrow recess such as would be true when one is cleaning the bottom of a deep, relatively small diameter receptacle. Then again, the handle may be adjusted to another position in which it extends laterally from the pad almost in the plane thereof, to facilitate cleaning of the side walls of a relatively shallow, large diameter receptacle.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claim in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawings forming a material part of this disclosure:

.Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a steel wool pad and handle embodying my invention.

atent O 'best shown in Fig. 1.

plane normal to the plane of the plate 18, and said walls.

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 with the handle adjusted to a vertical position.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken through the longitudinal center of Fig. 1, parts being shown broken away.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view substantially on line 4-4 of Fig. 3, a detent being shown in full and dotted lines in locking and unlocking positions respectively.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view substantially on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the same scale as Fig. 5, taken substantially on line 6-6 of Fig. 5, the detent being shown in full and dotted lines in locking and unlocking positions respectively.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged perspective view of the detent per se.

Fig. 8 is-a fragmentary perspective view of the lower portion of the handle, the scale being enlarged above that of Figs. 3 and 5, only the lower portion of the handle being shown.

Referring in detail to the drawings, in Fig. 1, there is-shown a steel wool pad made in accordance with the invention having a flat, approximately rectangular planiforrn backing plate 18, with rounded corners and cemerited at its underside to a steel wool pad 19 of any desirable thickness, the marginal portion of which projects slightly beyond the periphery of the backing plate. This is for the purpose of preventing the backing plate from striking the surface being cleaned in a manner that would tend to mar or scratch the surface. Integrally molded upon and projecting upwardly from plate -18, medially between the opposite end edges of the plate, are transversely spaced, coplanar walls 20 of rectangular, platelike formation, spaced comparatively closely apart at opposite sides of the center point of the plate 18, as The walls 20 lie in a common 20, as will be understood, together constitute handle means which can be used by being grasped directly by the hand of a user, for reciprocating the pad over the surface being cleaned.

Obviously the backing plate and handle means can be made so cheaply of plastic material as to permit the same to be disposed of with the steel wool pad, after the effective life of the pad has ended. If desired, an extension handle 22 can be connected to the handle means 20. The extension handle 22 is in the form of an elongated, one-piece handle member, which can be of molded plastic or the like, having inwardly from its base end a pair of opposed, parallel slots 24 extending transversely of the handle extension 22 at opposite sides thereof (see Fig. 2). The slots are cut into the handle extension rather deeply, being spaced apart at their bottom walls a distance transversely of the handle equal to the distance between the walls 20.

Also formed in the handle extension 22 are diametrically opposed longitudinal slots 26. These terminate at their inner ends short of the transverse slot 24, and are formed in the same side surfaces of handle extension 22 as the slots 24.

Adjacent one of the slots or'grooves 24, there is formed in the same side surface of the handle extension a short locking groove 28, the length of which is normal to the length of the adjacent groove 24 (Fig. 8).

. Adjacent the inner end of the groove 26- at the same side of the handle extension is a small groove 30, the I length of which is also normal tothe length of the groove 26. A detent 32 (Fig. 7) is in the form of a single piece of thin, light, leaf spring material,

which in blank would constitute merely a small, elongated, "rectangular memor at? V her. The detent 32, at its upper end, has. a forwardly projecting locking lug or finger 33, adapted to complement and engage in the locking groove 28 as shown in" Fig. 4, and also adapted to lockably engage in the groove 30, when the handle ispositioned as in Figs. 2, 5,. and .6.

As shown inFig. 7, longitudinal slits 35 are out the blank from which the detent istorrnod, said slits opening at one end'of the blank and at theirother ends terminating short of the adjacent end of the blank, at the location at which the et rdl project ng .l ehin finger 33 extends angularly from thehody portion of the blank- The s ts defih et eenthe me, a tong e 34, constituting a handle, and this is bent out of the gene erel Plane he bod at the d test rea ardly si stantially ninety degrees to the length of the body of the n A a sult, he handle 4 Proj ct ou w rdly, in a ma n r to permit i t9 .e c nve iently gr sp by a user.

At its foot, the detent is termed Iwith lugs 36 at ope Pe e d of he space defihed ys ki o the e si 34 out of the material of the body, and said lugs 36 are adapted o he e ded int th ma e ial o e ha ks pl 3 s hewn in. ts 4 and. 6. t0 ix dly t: l the detent e th hashing plat in. a Position P jecting upwardly from the backing plate in closely spaced el to one o t e walls 2.0.-

The detent s tese eh d te normally ause. the an there f to n a e n. the sreove .23 or 30, as the case m y b (se the hill ine Positions. of F gs- 4 and However, by grasping the handle 34 and pulling rearwardly on thefsaute, the detent is shifted outwardly to ts d ed lin pos tio This d g s. t e fin 33 from its associatedlocking groove.

In use, and assuming that itis desired to use the pad in cleaning the side wall of a relatively large diameter pan, one might dispose the handle extension 22 as in Fig. 1. In this position of the handle extension, it lies in a plane parallel to and closely spaced upwardly from the plane of the backing plate 18. The handle extension 22 thus projects laterally from the-steel wool pad, and the pad can be conveniently inserted in a pan, into engagement with the side wall thereof, with the handle extension 22 projecting out of the pan so as to' permit the steel wool pad to be conveniently manipulated over the surface of the pan.

When the handle 22 is positioned as in Fig- 1;. its

transverse grooves 24 receive the confronting inner ends of the walls'20, thus guiding'the handle to proper position and preventing its lateral displacement from said position.

To prevent the handle 22 from moving Upwardly. from the backing plate, the detent 32 is. permitted to enter the locking groove 28, which will be disposed in posi-,.

tion registering with the finger 33 of the detentwhenever the handle 22 is horizontally positioned asv in Fig, 1.

To detach the handle, one merely pulls outwardly on the tongue 34, shifting the detent to its dotted line position of Fig. 4. The handle 22 is thus detached and can be moved upwardly to become disengaged from the walls 20. I h i In Figs. 2, j and 6, the handle is extended in a posion s a ly el ted. o the plane Qt the bac ng nlate, at ninety degrees to said plane. The. handle. 22 extendsupwardly from the center portion of the backing plate,

and in this. instance the longitudinal grooves 26' receive theconfronting inner ends or 'the walls 20. This will dispose the locking groove 30 in position toreceive the finger 33, and again, the handle extension will be releasably locked against accidental detachment from the b aclgingplate.

It will be seen that the tioned either in its Fig, 1 or in its. Fig 2 position, with maximum ease and in" each position, "the'dete t jwi'l'l be disposed to lockably engage the handle extens on. ling handle extension can he posij efiiciency. The handle extension 22, of course, would 1,462,404. Bohrmann Oct. 2, 1923 'LQZQJ 8,3 1' 1,832,063 Q1931. 2,629,890. 1953 ZJZLtQdQ 1951' be permanently kept, so as to be used on difierent steel wool pads.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, itis to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise constructions herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as ew nd d sire to s cu e by U it d. States Letters Patent is:

A cleaning device comprising a rectangular backing plate having upstanding spaced walls, a steel wool pad seeured to the plate, and handle means extending outwardly from the backing plate, said backing plate being of flat formation, said handle means being disposed intermediate opposite ends of the backing plate, said handle means including a handle extension having in opposite side surfaces thereof a first pair of grooves adapted to receive said walls with the handle extension fitting into, the space between the walls, the handle extension having a second pair of grooves, the grooves of the jects outwardly and perpendicularly from the backing plate and detent means carried by the backing plate adapted to releasably engage the handle extension in each of said positions of the handle extension, said detent means comprising a leaf spring anchored at one end to h a kin Pl e W i o h r being adap e o ga eme t i he h ndle, extensi n, the and e. ex:

ensi n h vi pace lo king gr o es on of. which. is isp sed. to re ei e said. other end. of. the t at sp i n. ne pos tion f. e ha d e extensien, and. t h r off which is adapted to receive said other end of the leaf pring n h the p s tion at t h n le xtension, s locking grooves being perpendicularly related to each other nd being disposed adjacent the transverse and longitudinal grooves provided at one. Side of th handl extension, the locking groove adjacent the transverse groove being extended perpendicularly to said, transverse groove and the locking groove adjacentthe, longitudinal groove being extended perpendicularly to the longitudinal groove, said other end of the leaf spring being formed as a fiat, wide finger engaging in the respective locking grooves in the respectively opposite positions of the handle extension to hold the handle extension re;

asahly a a nst. detachmen from. said nills v References Cited in the file of'this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

